HELSINKI

11Award-winningrelaxation atHelsinki Day SpaThe expansion of the InternationalTerminal at Helsinki-Vantaa Airportwill be completed in autumn 2009.Passenger numbers at the airport broke anotherrecord in 2006 reaching 12.1 million, which is overone million more passengers than in the previousyear. Passenger numbers increased by 14 percentin international traffic and a full 30 percent inAsian traffic.Helsinki Day Spa was the only Nordic spa to belisted among the world’s top facilities by Englishmagazine Vogue. Representing a new kind of cityspa, Helsinki Day Spa offers a harmonious place torelax in the heart of town. The interior combines topcontemporary design with historical architecture,creating a luxurious high-quality atmosphere.Further information: www.dayspa.fiwww.finavia.fiHelsinki’s travel industry companiescommitted to qualityVR Ltd and Russianrailway companyOAO RZD have setup a joint rolling stockcompany for high speed railservices between Helsinkiand St. Petersburg. The aim isto reduce the travel time between Helsinki andSt. Petersburg from the current five and a halfhours to three hours. A total of 267,000 train journeyswere made between Finland and Russia in2005, representing growth of 6 percent over theprevious year. Growth in 2006 alone was around15 percent.www.vr.fiAs the tourism sector changes and the number of individual travellers increases, it has become increasinglyimportant to ensure the quality of even the smallest travel companies. When reservations are made directly oncompany websites, there is no longer a travel agent in between who can answer for the quality.For customers quality represents the entire process, including not only the relationship between price andquality, but also obtaining product information and the general efficiency of the purchasing process. Promotingthe quality of travel products is indeed a vital part of the work carried out by the Helsinki City Tourist &Convention Bureau.Participating in Quality 1000 trainingQuality 1000 training was introduced in spring 2006 by the T&E Employment and Economic DevelopmentCentre, Haaga Institute and Helsinki City Tourist & Convention Bureau. Twelve companies were selected forthe first quality group ranging from accommodation providers to event organisers. The group aims to completeits quality training in April before the summer rush begins. This spring the next quality group will also beselected, for whom training will begin in May 2007.The goal for the future is to attract as many of Helsinki’s travel industry companies as possible to participatein the quality training. Plans are to select another quality true at the end of summer for trainingduring autumn 2007. In addition, plans are being made to introduceDestination Quality Net (DQN) training in which all services at asingle tourist destination, from small companies to public organisations,would participate. Successful completion of DQNtraining allows an entire area to be promoted as a Quality1000 destination.Further information: antti.kaivonen@hel.fiANTTI KAIVONENProject Co-ordinator